


Lie of Omission

by Idicted



Category: Star Trek: The Original Series
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Hurt Spock (Star Trek), Hurt!Spock, Hurt/Comfort, Protective!McCoy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-23
Updated: 2018-07-23
Packaged: 2019-06-15 06:27:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15407010
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Idicted/pseuds/Idicted
Summary: At the beginning of the five year mission, Spock keeps quiet about being half human and it almost costs him his life. McCoy makes sure this can never happen again.





	Lie of Omission

 

“You ordered him to do WHAT?”

 

The Enterprise’s Chief Medical Officer had his hands planted on either side of the captain’s chair, spinning it around so that its occupant had to face him.

 

“Are you out of your mind?” The doctor cried, wondering the same thing about himself. _This ship started its five-year mission two weeks ago and I’m already making a scene with Command_ , he thought. But this situation was unacceptable.

 

“Doctor McCoy,” the man the doctor’s anger was directed it spat back, “as commanding officer of this vessel I do not have to explain to you…”

 

“Why you order people to their death?” McCoy interrupted, eyes blazing.

 

“I don’t have to defend myself to you. According to Starfleet Regulations you should not even be on the bridge.”

 

“I don’t give a damn about the Regulations,” McCoy raved. “As Chief Medical Officer I am responsible for the health of this crew and I expect to be consulted before someone is sent on a hazardous mission, especially when the person ordering this is a Commodore who has assumed command on a whim and who doesn’t know the first thing about the crew he’s ordering around!”

 

“Doctor, you are out of line,” came the icy reply. “I selected Commander Spock to go down to the moon because he is Vulcan and as you know, mortiferum emissions do not affect Vulcans.”

 

“He is HALF HUMAN!” McCoy shouted at Commodore King, willing him to understand the severity of the situation.

 

Lieutenant Uhura from Communications gave a shocked gasp and the eyes of the rest of the bridge crew widened in horrified understanding.

 

McCoy looked around in disbelief. “You mean to tell me none of you knew?” he asked incredulously.

 

“No, Doctor McCoy,” Uhura mumbled, “had I known, I would have said something when...”

 

“No matter now,” McCoy gruffly cut her off.  “How long ago?” He fixed the Commodore with his eyes and, when he didn’t immediately get an answer, repeated: “HOW LONG, damn it?”

 

“About thirty minutes,” King said sheepishly.

 

McCoy quickly did the math in his head. When Kirk and Sulu had beamed down to the moon this morning, Kirk had called for an emergency beam-up after eight minutes, wheezing and coughing. Both officers had materialized on the transporter platform, unmoving and with no signs of breathing. McCoy had had to reanimate them and had put them on artificial ventilation until the toxins had slowly begun to leave their systems. Kirk and Sulu were still unconscious but thankfully out of danger.

 

Spock, on the other hand, had been down there for thirty minutes, not eight. Yes, he was half-Vulcan but that didn’t mean he’d be able to stand exposure to high concentrations of mortiferum four times longer than what had almost cost the humans their lives.

 

McCoy shivered. “Beam him back _now_ and have medical stand by for emergency reanimation,” he said, making for the transporter room at top speed.

 

When he arrived in the transporter room, Christine Chapel, his head nurse, and Junior Nurse Simmers were already standing by. McCoy nodded approvingly at the efficiency of his team but so far there was no sign of Spock.

 

“What’s taking so long?” McCoy barked at the transporter technician.

 

“The Commodore informed me that he would try to contact the Commander via communicator before attempting a beam-up,” the man answered with a think Scottish accent. “But I have already locked on to his signal, doctor.”

 

 _Good man_ , McCoy thought, remembering that this was not just any technician, it was the Chief Engineer. Clearly the man had some common sense, unlike that Commodore King.

 

The Commodore had summoned them to Starbase 19 two days ago to investigate the theft of two freighters from the base's dry dock. The freighters belonged to a Mr Loppler, a wealthy merchant and ruthless businessman, who was paying the base handsome sums of money to ensure his cargo was safe. Needless to say, neither Loppler nor Commodore King had been too happy when two fully-loaded freighters had disappeared over night.

 

The Enterprise had quickly traced the freighters to a nearby moon, where they had been apparently marooned, cargo intact. Scans had revealed a breathable oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere and no life form readings on the moon, so Kirk and Sulu had beamed down to retrieve and pilot back the freighters. Spock later theorized that the emission of large quantities of mortiferum, which by now contaminated the moon’s entire atmosphere, had been triggered by motion sensors near the freighters.

 

While the Enterprise’s captain and navigator were fighting for their lives, the Commodore had assumed command of the Enterprise but had not progressed much in his endeavour to secure the freighters and find the party responsible for their theft, as Spock had calmly and logically countered each of the Commodore’s ideas. _Until about thirty-five minutes ago anyway_ , McCoy thought nervously, deciding that he needed to act now or never.

 

“Mr Scott, I can’t wait for the Commodore to make contact. Beam Mr Spock up _now_ , on my authority as CMO.”

 

“Aye, doctor,” Scott answered, relief in his voice.

 

Seconds later, the prone form of the Enterprise’s First Officer shimmered into existence before them.

 

McCoy knelt down beside Spock, checking for a pulse and breathing, finding neither.

 

“ _Shit_ , goddamnit, if I get my hands on that Commodore, so god help me… don’t you die on me you green-blooded …should have stayed in a nice little town in Georgia…,” the doctor muttered under his breath as he worked.

 

Once he had Spock stabilized, they moved him to sickbay, where an irate James T. Kirk was now very much awake and shouting at Commodore King over the intercom.

 

By the time McCoy had done all he could for Spock, Kirk was back in command of his ship, Sulu was back at his post, and they had abandoned the freighters for now, taking King back to his Starbase, while Starfleet Command were arbitrating between Kirk and King, who were accusing one another of improper conduct.

 

McCoy was checking on Spock’s vitals hourly, baffled by his readings, but hopeful that he was improving.

 

In the end, it took Spock three days to wake up. In the meantime Kirk had ordered the science department to construct probes that would clear the moon’s atmosphere of the mortiferum, and had found evidence in the freighters that they had been stolen by a group of disgruntled merchants looking to put Loppler, a rival trader, out of business, assuming he would go after his ships personally.

 

McCoy had found Spock sitting up in bed when he came in for his shift on the morning of the third day after beaming the Vulcan back aboard.

 

“You’re the quiet type, huh?” he commented as he approached his patient’s bed. “You could have called a nurse and let us know you’re awake, you know,” he continued as he began checking Spock’s vitals and reflexes.

 

“I do not see what that would have accomplished, doctor,” Spock replied, “seeing as I am in charge of the shift roster and knew your arrival was imminent.”

 

“You memorized the whole roster…for 430 crewmen?” McCoy marvelled, half impressed, half disbelieving. Spock was about to answer when McCoy dismissed his him with a wave of his hand.

 

“Never mind now, Spock. What I really want to know is, how’re you feeling?”

 

“I am a Vulcan,” Spock stated calmly, raising an eyebrow. “Vulcans do not experience 'feelings'”.

 

McCoy tried to swallow his irritation but didn’t quite manage. “That's what you've been telling everyone apparently. That you're _Vulcan_. And that almost got you killed three days ago.”

 

Spock raised an eyebrow. “I do not follow, doctor.”

 

“The Commodore thought you were Vulcan, I mean a _full_ Vulcan, when he sent you down to that moon, and because you apparently haven't told any of the crew that you're in fact _half human_ , no one so much as protested when he ordered you to go. Speaking of which, why didn't you say something?” McCoy shouted, looking positively frightening now, but Spock remained as clam as before.

 

“I attempted to intimate to the Commodore that I was not as well suited to the mission's requirements as he believed. However, I was not able to finish imparting this knowledge to him as he gave me a direct order to beam down.”

 

“ _Not well suited to the mission's requirements_? Christ, Spock, you must have known how this would end for you. Why did you obey?”

 

The First Officer was silent for some time, then stated lamely: “As I said, doctor, it was a direct order...”

 

“Which you knew would cost you your _life_ ,” McCoy exploded.

 

After a moment of uncomfortable silence, the doctor pinched the bridge of his nose and tried again, more calmly this time.

 

“Tell me exactly what the Commodore said to you, Spock.”

 

When Spock didn't respond, the doctor silently continued examining his patient, but finally Spock said almost inaudibly: “ _If you question or contradict another one of my orders, Commander, I will put both Captain Pike and Captain Kirk up for review for inability to enforce obedience among the senior crew. And now I order you to go down to the moon and retrieve those freighters_.”

 

McCoy stared at Spock, who was pointedly avoiding the doctor’s gaze.

 

“Hang on,” McCoy said, his eyes narrowing. “Pike is a Starfleet _legend_. Being up for review would do nothing to his position or reputation. But Jim has held his command for a little over two weeks now. An unfavourable review could finish him.”

 

Spock stared at his hands folded on the sickbay blanket still covering his legs.

 

“Pike has had years to earn that kind of loyalty from you, but, again, Jim has had only _two weeks_ … Either you’re very loyal very quickly, Mr Spock, or Jim has charmed his way even into a cold Vulcan heart.”

 

Spock raised an eyebrow at this remark, but McCoy continued.

 

“God knows, if anyone in the world deserves that crazy loyalty you’re showing, it’s James Kirk. But loyalty should go both ways, Spock. You shouldn’t just be loyal to Jim, you should want to earn the loyalty of the crew also. You’re willing to save Jim’s command at the expense of your own life, _fine_ , but at least give us a fighting chance to save you in return. And we can only do that if you share some information about yourself, such as the fact that you’re _half human_!”

 

Spock cast his eyes down.

 

“I’ve been told Vulcans don’t lie, but what you’re doing is called lying by omission. Is being human really so terrible that you can’t admit to that part of your heritage in front of other _humans_?” McCoy could feel himself getting really angry.

 

“And it’s not like this is some trivial fact, _no_ , as we have seen it’s a _vital_ piece of information! You really think the bridge crew would have let the Commodore order you to go down there if they’d known it could kill you?” McCoy asked irritably.

 

Spock raised his eyes to meet the doctor’s and his voice was quiet as he answered. “I am… uncertain, doctor.”

 

At this admission, all anger left McCoy and he regarded the man in front of him earnestly before he said softly: “Well, I’m  _damn_ certain, Spock. On no ship run by James Kirk will anyone stand idly by when one of our own is in danger. Thing is, most of the crew don’t know hell of a lot about Vulcans, or _half_ Vulcans for that matter. Hell, when you were unconscious _I_ wasn’t sure what to make of your readings. So you know what? I’m prescribing a course of socializing for you. Doctor’s orders.”

 

For someone who claimed to have no emotions, McCoy thought, Spock looked extremely uncomfortable.

 

“Vulcan do not…‘socialize,’” Spock stated pointedly.

 

“Well, it’s a good thing you’re half human then, isn’t it?” McCoy said cheerfully. “I hear Lieutenant Uhura enjoys music, Mr Sulu’s hobby is botany, and Jim likes chess.” McCoy grinned. “I’m sure you can find some connecting factors with any of them.”

 

Spock looked unconvinced.

 

“And in case you were thinking of ignoring your friendly doctor’s advice,” McCoy continued unperturbed, “I’m gonna have to have a word with the captain about the true reasons why you chose to put yourself in danger, understood?” McCoy’s eyes bored into the Vulcan’s.

 

“Understood, doctor,” Spock said curtly. “May I return to my duties now?”

 

“You may, Commander. I’m clearing you for duty – and for _off-duty_ activities as of the end of your shift today.” McCoy gave Spock a meaningful look.

 

As he watched the Fist Officer exit sickbay, a thoughtful look spread across his face. Though Spock would surely deny it, McCoy felt certain that the Vulcan’s actions had been of an emotional nature and not determined by the logic so highly prized on his home planet.

 

 _He may not want to admit he’s half human, but actions speak stronger than words_ , McCoy thought. _And I’m gonna keep reminding him of his human side_.

 

 


End file.
